Landing gear and control



Jan. 16, 1940. .1. B. REINHARD ET AL LANDING GEAR AND CONTROL 7 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 29. 1957 A TTORNEYS.

J. B. REINHARD 'AL LANDING GEAR AND CONTROL 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec.

ATTORNEYS.

1940 J. B. REINHARD ET AL LANDING GEAR AND coNTRoL 'Filed Dec. 29, 1937 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Jan. 16, 1940 UNITED STATES LANDING GEAR- AND CONTROL John B. Reinhard and Lynn J. Koch, Allentown,

Pa.; said Reinhard assignor to said Koch Application December 29, 1937, Serial No. 182,339

4 Claims.

This invention aims to provide novel means whereby an airship, whether moving in the air or taxying on the ground, may be steered from a single point of force application represented by a wheel under the control of an operator. The invention aims, further, to provide novel means for mounting the rear landing gear for rotation about a vertical axis. Another object of the invention is to provide novel means whereby a horizontally and laterally movable rudder may be actuated in consonance with a ground-engaging landing gear, either one of the parts referred to being under the control of an operator, the ship always being under the governance of an operator, from a single steering wheel or the like, regardless of whether the ship is in the air or on the ground.

It is within the province of the disclosure to improve generally and to enhance the utility of devices of that type to which the present invention appertains.

With the above and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds. the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, may be made within the scope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 shows in side elevation, a device constructed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of the means whereby the rear landing gear and the laterally movable rudder are controlled;

Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section wherein parts are broken away;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken through the rear end portion of the ship;

Fig. 5 is a top plan illustrating the mounting of the landing gear;

Fig. 6 is a vertical section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a horizontal section on the line 'I'I of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a section on the line 88 of Fig. 5.

In carrying out the invention, there is provided a body I of any desired construction. The body I may be of the general bullet-shape shown in the drawings, and is Wingless. The body I is pointed at both ends, as shown at 2, to decrease resistance.

The body I is provided with a raised roof 3,

supplied with as many transparent panels 4 as are desired or necessary, for the convenience of a pilot occupying a seat 5 in a pilots compartment 6, the pilots compartment 6 being formed by a platform I and by a vertical support 8 in the body I. Any suitable propelling means 2I, 22 and 35 for the body I are provided. A vertically tiltable draft check 39 is supplied, and is mounted on the raised roof 3, the draft check forming no part of the" present application. The body I is provided near its rear end with fixed lateral fins 54, to the rear edges of which vertically movable rudders are pivoted at 56, these parts having no specific bearing on the subject matter hereinafter referred to. The front landing gear 44 may be of standard or of any desired construe tion., I

The body I carries, near to its rear end, an upstanding fin 64, and to the rear end of the. fin ispivoted by means of a vertical shaft journaled in the body I, a horizontally movable rudder 6B. A pulley 61 is secured to the lower end of the shaft 65. A steering shaft 68 is jour-' naled in the support 8 and is provided with a hand wheel 69, readily accessible from the pilots seat 5. A drum III is secured to the shaft 68.

A first flexible element II is engaged with the,

drum I0, and is in the form of a loop, passed over idlers I2 journaled on the machine, the flexible element II being engaged around the pulley 6'! on the shaft 65 of the horizontally movable rudder 66.

The rearlanding gear or truck may be of various constructions, and comprises a rotatable member or pulley 41, which may be constructed as desired and mounted on the lower, portion of the body I, for rotation, in any desired way. If preferred, the rotatable member 4'! may comprise a rim 9 connected by spokes I0 to a hub II journaled on a headed shaft or bolt 48. The rim 9 has depending arms 46, carrying an axle I4, with which rear ground wheels 45 are assembled. The rim 9 of the pulley 41 has a shallow circums'cribing groove I5, and a deeper circumscribing groove I 6.

Although any desired means for mounting and supporting the pulley 4! for rotation may be provided, it may be convenient to supply a frame 49, including parallel arches H, the feet of which may be attached by securing elements I8 to the lower portion of the body I.

Disposed beneath the first arches IT, at right angles thereto, are second arches I9, arranged in parallel relation, the feet of the arches I9 being attached by securing elements 20 to the lower portion of the body I. In cross section, the arches I! and I9 may be angle members, if the builder prefers. Through the instrumentality of brackets 23 and securing members 24, the crowns of the arches ll and H! are joined together.

Securing devices 25 connect the brackets 23 to a disk or race member 26, and in the disk, the shaft or bolt 48 is mounted, a nut 21 or any equivalent means being mounted on the shaft 48, below the hub H of the pulley 41.

The pulley 41 has an upperannular flange 28, and both the flange 28 and the periphery of the disk 26 are received in segmental casing members 29 which are channel-shaped in cross section. The disk 26 is secured at 3D to the upper flange of the casing members 29, and the lower flange of the casing members rest on the lower part of the body I, about an opening 3| in the body. In the said opening 3|, the rim 9 of the pulley 41 is mounted to turn. The disk 26 and the rim 9 of the pulley 4! have cooperating annular races 32, receiving anti-friction balls 33. In certain of the casing members 29, openings 34 are formed, as shown in Fig. 3. The described means for mounting the pulley 4'! for rotation is highly useful and satisfactory, but any acceptable substitute may be supplied without departing from the spirit of the invention or placing the utility of the machine, considered as a whole, in jeopardy.

The ends of a second flexible element 13 are secured at spaced points, as shown at 14, to the side portions of the flexible element H, the flexible element '13 passing over idlers 15 on the ship. The flexible element 13 extends through the openings 34 in certain of the casing members 29, and is looped at 16 about the pulley 41 on the shaft 48 of the landing gear, represented by the ground wheels 45.

The flexible element 13 is engaged in the shallower groove !5 of the pulley 47. About the pulley Al is engaged the intermediate portion of a flexible element 51] mounted in the deeper groove N3 of the pulley 41. By having the grooves l5 and N5 of difierent depths, the flexible elements 13 and 50 are spaced apart transversely, and may run freely, without interference one from the other. The flexible element 50 passes outwardly through the openings 34 in certain of the casing members 29.

The rear ends of the flexible element 50 are connected to the forward ends of rearwardly extended pull springs 5i, and the rear ends of the springs are connected to adjusting devices, for instance draw bolts 52, longitudinally adjustable in lugs 53 on the body I, under the action of nuts l2 threaded on the bolts and engaging the lugs.

When the shaft 68 is rotated by means of the hand wheel 69, the drum ill is rotated, and the flexible element H, cooperating with the pulley on the shaft 65 of the horizontally and laterally movable rudder 66, actuates the said rudder. If the machine is moving along the surface of the ground, the flexible element 13, which is connected at M to the flexible element ll, imparts rotation to the rear landing gear, represented by the ground wheels 45, through the instrumentality of the pulley 47.

Both the rudder 5G and the rear landing gear, it is obvious, are controlled from a single point of force application, which is the hand wheel 69 on the shaft E58. When the hand wheel 69 is released, the pull springs 5| bring the wheels 45 of the rear landing gear automatically into parallelism with the longitudinal axis of the body I. The rudder 66 is kept parallel to the longitudinal axis of the body I, by means of the springs 5!, unless the hand wheel 59 is manipulated to achieve a different result.

It will be observed that, from a single point of force application, to wit the wheel 69, both the rudder 66 and the rear landing gear represented by the wheels 45 are controlled in consonance, If the ship is in the air, the steering is brought about by means of the rudder 66, but if the machine is rolling along the ground on the wheels 44 and 45, the steering is effected primarily by the rotation of the truck whereof the Wheels 45, the pulley 41, and associated elements form parts.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. In a device of the class described, a body, parallel upstanding first arches secured at their lower ends to the body, parallel second arches disposed at right angles to the first arches and secured at their lower ends to the body, the second arches extending beneath the first arches, means for connecting together the crowns of the arches, a casing secured within the arches and having a lower flange, a race member secured to the upper portion of the casing memher, a shaft carried by the race member. a rotatable member journaled on the shaft and having a flange extended above the lower flange of the casing, means for rotating the rotatable member, antifriction devices between the race member and the rotatable member, landing wheels, and means for mounting the landing wheels on the rotatable member.

2. In a device of the class described, a body, parallel upstanding first arches secured at their lower ends to the body, parallel second arches disposed at right angles to the first arches and secured at their lower ends to the body, the second arches extending beneath the first arches, a connecting means joining the crowns of the arches, a casing secured within the arches and having a lower flange, a race member secured to the connecting means, a shaft carried by the race member, a rotatable member journaled on the shaft and extended above the flange of the casing, means for rotating the rotatable member, landing wheels, and means for mounting the landing wheels on the rotatable member.

3. In a device of the class described, a body, parallel upstanding first arches secured at their lower ends to the body, parallel second arches disposed at right angles to the first arches and secured at their lower ends to the body, the second arches extending beneath the first arches, a disk-like bearing member, means for securing the bearing member to the arches, a shaft mounted on the bearing member, a rotatable member journaled on the shaft and cooperating with the bearing member, means for rotating the rotatable member, landing wheels, and means for mounting the landing wheels on the rotatable member.

4. In a device of the class described, a body, forward landing wheels on the body, a circumscribing casing connected to the body, a race member connected to the casing, a shaft carried by the race member, a rotatable member journaled in the casing and on the shaft, antifriction devices disposed between the rotatable member and the race member, means for rotating the rotatable member, rear landing Wheels,

and means for mounting the rear landing wheels 7,5

on the rotatable'niember, the forward and rear landing wheels being of the same diameter, the

distance between the forward landing wheels and the forward end of the body being equal tothe distance between the rear landing wheels and the rear end of the body, thereby to effect a stabilization of the body, the rear landing wheels serving, 

